Talk:Oscar Pistorius

Could someone explain why the court sentence was changed?

This presumably is due to the differences in South African laws, but for example here in the USA, the double jeopardy clause in the U.S. Constitution prevents such an action. Once the decision is delivered the State cannot appeal, unless there is something unusual like a miscarriage of justice (e.g., the presiding judge admits to taking a bribe to throw the case). Could someone include a note as to how and why the original decision was changed? __209.179.0.121 (talk) 17:23, 4 December 2015 (UTC)

The prosecutors appealed the verdict. Apparently that's the legal system works in SA. I added a couple of paragraphs on the process. Pkeets (talk) 01:47, 5 December 2015 (UTC)

Yes, prosecution appeal is possible in the UK, too, in exceptional circumstances. Note that the sentence is actually 15 years, the minimum for murder in South Africa, according to the BBC report, less time already served = 13y5m. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.174.131.198 (talk) 10:14, 24 November 2017 (UTC)

The responses to the original question explain how it could be changed - but not why.

The trial judge, having heard all the witnesses, concluded that Pistorius' statement that he thought the person in the bathroom was an intruder was truthful. A vulnerable person who shoots an unknown, possibly armed, intruder is committing a crime in some jurisdictions, but there are clearly mitigating circumstances. Influential media promoted the opinion that he just intended to murder Steenkamp. This created a lot of political pressure for a heavy sentence, which may, or may not, be the reason the Supreme Court kept overruling the trial judge. But this is really speculation and does not belong in the article. Longitude2 (talk) 22:03, 10 July 2020 (UTC)

External links modified

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Reeva Steenkamp

Steenkamps murder almost a footnote amongst many accolades. I’m not suggesting an alternative template but I do feel it’s an issue to consider. 2A01:4B00:87A0:1F00:8D9D:52C1:18F2:A34B (talk) 21:18, 23 December 2022 (UTC)

I would also expect his profile photo to be a mugshot, not a glamour sport photo. 2400:2411:1C1:C400:7928:847C:9B08:2CD2 (talk) 02:49, 18 January 2023 (UTC)

Early release

He is seeking early release from August 2022 sourceBBC is it worth mentioning yet Beautiful Rosie (talk) 06:34, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

Would you provide a citation? Peaceray (talk) 15:24, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-62738416 Beautiful Rosie (talk) 19:33, 13 February 2023 (UTC)

https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/oscar-pistorius-to-get-24-hour-police-protection-upon-release-as-reeva-steenkamp/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by Beautiful Rosie (talk • contribs) 11:10, 19 February 2023 (UTC)

Seeking Consensus to Not to Bury Pistorius' Criminality under his Athletic Performance

This morning, I changed the opening paragraph of Pistorius' article from

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius (/pɪˈstɔːriəs/ pist-OR-ee-əs, Afrikaans: [pəˈstuəriœs]; born 22 November 1986) is a South African double amputee, former professional sprinter, and convicted murderer. He was the 10th athlete to compete at both the Paralympic Games and Olympic Games. Pistorius ran in both nondisabled sprint events and in sprint events for below-knee amputees. Both of his legs were amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old as a result of a birth defect; he was born missing the outsides of both feet and both fibulas. Pistorius's athletic career ended when he was convicted of murder in 2015. He was first convicted of culpable homicide of his then-girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, which was subsequently upgraded to murder upon appeal.

to

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius (/pɪˈstɔːriəs/ pist-OR-ee-əs, Afrikaans: [pəˈstuəriœs]; born 22 November 1986) is a South African convicted murderer, double amputee, and former professional sprinter. His athletic career ended when he was convicted of murder in 2015. Pistorius was first convicted of culpable homicide of his then-girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, which was subsequently upgraded to murder upon appeal.

He was the 10th athlete to compete at both the Paralympic Games and Olympic Games. Pistorius ran in both nondisabled sprint events and in sprint events for below-knee amputees. Both of his legs were amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old as a result of a birth defect; he was born missing the outsides of both feet and both fibulas.

with the justification:

I restructured the opening paragraph to present the most significant of Pistorius' characteristics first in a list of notable qualities and actions.

It was reverted with the following reason provided:

There are thousands of convicted muderers who are hardly notable. His notability came first from his athleticism. To put his conviction first is undue! st is undue! Disagree? As WP:BRD suggests, discuss on the talk page & get consensus first.

So I'm here because, yes, I do disagree. There may be billions of unremarkable convicted murderers, and only a few hundred who were otherwise notable - but not one of the victims of any deserves to have a celebration of their killer's abilities be given priority over their decision to end someone's life in cold blood.

I did not remove information. I simply changed the order.

I am seeking consensus to permanently reformat Pistorius' page to first acknowledge Reeva Steenkamp's murder ahead of whatever he may have done on the track.

Under a BLUF principle, the bottom line is that Pistorius killed another human in a domestic violence incident. That isn't less important than being good at sport. Just Whelmed (talk) 03:02, 2 April 2026 (UTC)